Farewell Big "E"

[Va Beach VH Fan]

Everyone believes some bullshit. The monetary system proves this. If people didn't believe in bullshit no way in hell would they be able to just type some numbers in a computer and make people actually believe it was worth something. I was once told investing is the process of finding a bigger fool. You always need someone who wants to pay more for it than you did. Of course the richest people and the people who run things are the master illusionists and bullshitters. Unless you are up at the top, you believe in some bullshit. The real trick is getting enough people to believe in your bullshit. That's the real trick isn't it? Also the grand game is making people think that the solution is to take you down when in reality they are just making you stronger. Most of the world's problems stem from people believing in massive amounts of bullshit and never being able to quite figure it out. No bullshit is alive and well. Religion is just one form of bullshit.

People worship bullshit in many forms.

Whatever you say there, chief.....

[BITEYOASS]

On a side note, from my personal experience the F-14 Tomcat is the loudest fuckin' aircraft I ever heard in my life.

[BITEYOASS]

You know what really blows? During my entire time in either 3rd MAW & 4th MAW I never got the opportunity to be on a carrier for a MEU deployment. Not even a diesel amphibious carrier. Yet I wound up going to Iraq for six months.

[Nitro Express]

On a side note, from my personal experience the F-14 Tomcat is the loudest fuckin' aircraft I ever heard in my life.

The F-14 was a cool plane. It was a real trick to make a strong hinge point for the wings to pivot on. It was a big huge piece of titanium and it was expensive but it gave the plane capability at slow to supersonic speeds.

This is an interesting read on the F-14.

http://www.airspacemag.com/military-aviation/tomcat-tales.html?c=y&page=1

[sadaist]

really cool graphic Bri. These carriers are fucking amazing behemoths. How the fuck they even float... Entire city on it. I got to go on one in cub scouts or school trip. Forget which. Awesome. Sad to see this one go. But as noted before, gotta get rid of the old Enterprise to make room for the new.


*you guys see that new Chinese carrier? Damn cool.

[sadaist]

Is there a hierarchy with the different type ships & crews? Like to the carrier guys look down at the destroyer guys who look down at the submarine guys and so forth?

[sadaist]

I can remember when we lived in Hong Kong and the US Enterprise was in port. There were US Navy sailors everywhere. You know a ship has a big crew when it's that noticeable when they come to shore in a very populated city.

I had a US Enterprise model that would float and ran on batteries. Before there was video games and kids actually built models and sniffed the glue to get high.

http://youtu.be/KEvi4LULz_Q

I had a submarine that took pellets and a boat too. We had a swimming pool & Id launch em off all the time. Also used the pool to test all my fishing lures out. Chlorine was probably bad, but I was like 10 & it was fun casting off the diving board.

Speaking of fishing. I used to take my 19' boat into San Diego bay to fish. We would drift past the docked carriers. Damn! Compared to my tiny little boat, sheesh. You really appreciate the size of these monsters. I remember a group of the guys on deck of one cheered us as we wrestled in a 22 pound flounder with no gaff. HAHA! Those dudes were thinking....no way these idiots get that slippery beast on board.

[Nickdfresh]

On a side note, from my personal experience the F-14 Tomcat is the loudest fuckin' aircraft I ever heard in my life.

Nothing against the Super Hornets, but Naval Aviation just isn't the same without the Tomcat...

[Va Beach VH Fan]

Is there a hierarchy with the different type ships & crews? Like to the carrier guys look down at the destroyer guys who look down at the submarine guys and so forth?

Yeah, you'll find that if a battle group pulls into a port, the carrier guys have a chip on their shoulder compared to the destroyer/cruiser/frigate guys.....

[cadaverdog]

Not to mention SSC/NTC San Diego, where some of the scenes on base were filmed....

I took a trip to TJ right before 9/11 and went by the base where I attended boot. Worm Island. And I couldn't believe they were tearing everything down.But MCRD was still there. When I was there they told us if we tried to escape and got caught at MCRD you would be forced to change over to the marine corps. Not too many people tested that story.

[cadaverdog]

Yeah, you'll find that if a battle group pulls into a port, the carrier guys have a chip on their shoulder compared to the destroyer/cruiser/frigate guys.....

I never caught that vibe. A lot of the jarheads thought their shit didn't stink but not other squids.

[cadaverdog]

I had a submarine that took pellets and a boat too. We had a swimming pool & Id launch em off all the time. Also used the pool to test all my fishing lures out. Chlorine was probably bad, but I was like 10 & it was fun casting off the diving board.

Speaking of fishing. I used to take my 19' boat into San Diego bay to fish. We would drift past the docked carriers. Damn! Compared to my tiny little boat, sheesh. You really appreciate the size of these monsters. I remember a group of the guys on deck of one cheered us as we wrestled in a 22 pound flounder with no gaff. HAHA! Those dudes were thinking....no way these idiots get that slippery beast on board.

I had an 18 foot pool with the inflatable ring in my back yard and lost the war against the water turning green. We started throwing catfish we caught in the California Aqueduct. We put too many in and they all died from lack of oxygen in the water. We hooked up an air pump after that and it was good to go. Eventually the top ring got weathered and wouldn't hold air and off to the dump it went. We gave all the fish away to friends that like catfish. I can't stand them. They taste like dirt when they come out of the Aqueduct.

[cadaverdog]

I was offered a gig as an aircraft fire control tech when I went to the Afees station to join. I turned it down because I thought it would limit my job opportunities after I got out. I ended up as a fire control tech on a destroyer. It didn't matter in the end. I spent most of my time on ship washing dishes or swabbing the deck. I made rank and got to actually work on the fire control system but got busted down and back to the dishes I went. When I got out I ended up building houses. Never used any of my Navy training in the job market. After I had my fill of carpentry I became a truck driver. Now I'm going back to school to learn more about computers. Maybe something I learned in the service might help me now. The VA's paying me so at least I'm getting something from serving. I had a ball when I was in. Probably the best years of my life.

[twonabomber]

Speaking of fishing. I used to take my 19' boat into San Diego bay to fish. We would drift past the docked carriers. Damn! Compared to my tiny little boat, sheesh. You really appreciate the size of these monsters. I remember a group of the guys on deck of one cheered us as we wrestled in a 22 pound flounder with no gaff. HAHA! Those dudes were thinking....no way these idiots get that slippery beast on board.

My friend was in the Navy in the early 90's. They were stuck in port in Hawaii when Iniki came through. Everything else got sent out but they were short a generator or engine or something. Anyways...he says "you don't think a ship that big will rock, but it does."

Actually had two friends in the Navy around the same time, my other friend was in the reserves and got sent to Sicily during Desert Shield/Storm. It was kind of cool getting two phone calls from halfway around the world that New Year's Eve. My friend on the O'Brien was in the Gulf "sitting here with the AC on stun."

[Va Beach VH Fan]

I took a trip to TJ right before 9/11 and went by the base where I attended boot. Worm Island. And I couldn't believe they were tearing everything down.But MCRD was still there. When I was there they told us if we tried to escape and got caught at MCRD you would be forced to change over to the marine corps. Not too many people tested that story.

I drove around the old base a couple of years ago... So many memories... It's been renovated with a bunch of things now, called Liberty Station.... Some of the old buildings are still there....

http://libertystation.com/